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SuzukiSavage.com
/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl General Category >> Rubber Side Down! >> Problems with S40 ? /cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1223092557 Message started by BarkBuster on 10/03/08 at 20:55:48 |
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Title: Problems with S40 ? Post by BarkBuster on 10/03/08 at 20:55:48 I was looking to buy a 2008 S40 and my local dealer has stopped selling the S40 because they have had a long history of performance and quality problems with this model. So my dealer says he wont sell the S40 untill suzuki address the problems? Is this True ? It looks like a great bike to me. Thanks for any input on this. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by justin_o_guy2 on 10/03/08 at 21:02:27 maybe he isnt making enuogh $$ on the Savage. But, as for them not being reliable, Id say Horse HOKKEE,, the model has been on the market for about 20 years,, the bugs are basically worked out. The ones that arent, we work aropund. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by verslagen1 on 10/03/08 at 21:11:34 It has a long history period. How many other bikes are made as long? A few. Yes there are problems, it's a inexpensive bike, so there isn't a lot of fancy high tech stuff on it. But if you ask us, I think we all prefer it that way. rejet the carb and you got a good preformer. Watch the maintanance and you'll have a rock solid bike. Are you new to m/c's? This is one starter bike that you'll stick with. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by YonuhAdisi on 10/03/08 at 22:57:36 Let me guess, your dealer after saying all that bullsh!t then tried to sell you an S50 or one of the bigger twins? The Savage/S40 is about as basic as they come, yet very reliable. Your dealer is a moron. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by Tincanman on 10/04/08 at 01:20:49 I have a buddy that runs a repair shop and the only thing he has seen is they over heat and trash the head. other than that they will run forever if you take care of it. I agree your dealer is a retard or just wants to sell you a bigger bike. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by mornhm on 10/04/08 at 06:32:02 In my opinion this dealer is lying to you or worse doesn't know the product he is selling. He may want to sell you a bigger MC, or he may not have any Savages because he sold out, or can't get them from Suzuki because he doesn't sell enough merchandise. Whatever, the Savage is a reliable MC, and this is from a person who wen to a bigger ST and sold his Savage, but it had nothing to do with reliability. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by Mr. Hyde on 10/04/08 at 07:04:58 If Suzuki dealers really gave a dam* about their customers, they'd rejet the bike before it went on the floor. They'd be giving their customer a 100% better performing motorcycle and they probably wouldn't see them again until the 1st service. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by Bear_Rider on 10/04/08 at 13:43:58 2F104C2A1B0607620 wrote:
If they did that, the EPA fines would close their doors. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by Dj12midnit on 10/04/08 at 14:41:05 I wont claim to be an expert but I know that I bought my savage with 11 miles on it back in February. it now has 5500 miles on it and they only problem it has had, was when some ass wanted to make a left across my path and I laid it down. A Titanium plate and 300 bucks with of parts later it is running strong. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by T Mack 1 on 10/04/08 at 16:13:26 6C4B4F5C717C474A4B5C2E0 wrote:
If they did that, the EPA fines would close their doors.[/quote] Aaaaaa .... but if you ask for a custom exhaust.... Like you can do on every other bike, they would have to rejet..... |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by Charon on 10/05/08 at 06:26:30 If the EPA actually paid attention, those custom exhaust systems are just as illegal as rejetting. Any modification which increases the noise level, whether an exhaust modification or an intake (air box) modification, is illegal for on-road use. Any modification which increases emissions is illegal. Removing the idle screw plug is illegal, even if you don't change the setting. The "white spacer mod" is illegal. Dealerships will tell you they can't adjust the carburetor, and blame it on the EPA, and they will be correct. They will NOT tell you the EPA forbids exhaust modifications, because they stand to make money selling the custom pipes and charging labor to install them. They know if they won't install the custom exhausts their customers will go to some independent mechanic who will - even though it is just as illegal for the independent mechanic. In my opinion the reason dealerships don't sell a lot of S40s is money. It is a low priced motorcycle, so there isn't as much markup. There are not a lot of accessories marketed for it. That's because accessories tend to be priced the same, no matter what motorcycle they fit. People aren't going to put $2000 worth of accessories on a $4300 bike, even though they will cheerfully do it on a $15000 bike. The accessory makers know that, so they don't bother making the accessories in the first place. Instead, they go for the Harley market, where the same accessories fit lots of models, and where a LOT of bikes were sold. The same problems exist for other low-priced bikes, such as Kawasaki's 125 Eliminator and 250 Ninja, Honda's 250 Rebel, Suzuki's GN250, Yamaha's 250 V-twin (Star?), and no doubt others. Even if accessories exixted, people are more likely to trade up into a bigger bike (on which the dealership makes its profit) than to buy accessories. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by bill67 on 10/05/08 at 07:34:11 The dealers around here all have at lease one s40,they don't sell good in this area,And they told me a lot of people are disappointed in it,I've seen dealers with used ones with a couple 100 miles and seen them in the paper with just a couple hundred miles on them,main thing is the ride and vibration,and high rpm.which make them not good for the freeway riding. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by justin_o_guy2 on 10/05/08 at 08:36:12 And a Supertrapp or Dyna muffler, rejet & chain conversion & Voila...gotchyerself a runner for the slab. As long as you strap some crap on it to make it heavier. BVeat Duck took his from Florida, to Az. to Canada, across to North of New York & back to Florida...Nope, they wont do on the road, Not at all.. His was near stock IIRC. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by MickeyX on 10/05/08 at 09:01:45 I like the savage overall. I've had a slew of problems with my 86 i bought earlier this year but most of it was due to the former owner putting stuff on it or messing with things he didn't understand. There is good and bad about every cycle out there... the drawbacks for me are... 1)not real comfy for a long ride but the seat can be changed. I've read on here though that it doesn't make much of a difference for most people though. 2)would like a bigger gas tank 3)the carb needs to messed with a bit because of the jets and white spacer but once it's there, it's golden 4)not many after market parts like... i had a heck of a time finding new front footpegs for it. 5)i'm only 5'6" and it fits me well but i can see that taller people may want to go with Ed L's forward control fix 6) biggest pet peeve... the speedometer and indicator lights are on the tank. such a PITA when removing the tank or when riding and having to drop my head way down to check on speed. i wear a full face and can't just glance down. it's a safety issue in my mind. 7) cam chain tensioner POS. all easy fixes and all found here on this site. they come up every week on here. same ones, over and over. but still, suzuki hasn't thought to fix any of them since the 1st year out, 86. that bugs me. good bike overall. compared to a yamaha virago, it's a gem. (they sound like a homeless drunk guy with TB coughing up a hairball when starting) i wish they would fix the known faults though. i got it at a reasonable price and will eventually sell it at a reasonable price only because i can only afford one bike at a time and want to do some touring next year. this one won't cut it for what i want to do. it's a good starter bike and if you get one, come on here with your questions. these guys know a lot. then again, they've had to learn it for a reason. good luck. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by BurnPgh on 10/05/08 at 20:49:00 The Savage/s40 has some quirks. The biggest ones involve rejetting, the cam chain tensioner, and the head plug leak. All other "problems" are basically comfort issues. I HAVE noticed however that there have been 2 dropped valves in just the past couple months on this forum. I havent received an answer from the owners of those bikes but I'm willing to bet they're happening on newer bikes. '04 and more recent. If that turns out to be the case there is a grain of truth to "quality issues" which Im geussing are related to the floundering world economy. Lower wages resulting in shoddier work and less or less stringent maint. on factory machinery. Probably also purchasing materials of less quality. I've actually noticed a similar happening going on with newer rebel 250's on the Rebel forum. One reason I specifically went looking for an '03 or older Rebel when I started riding. If that turns out to be the issue the solution is simple...buy a Savage, not an S40. Anyhow, with the exception of the three issues I mentioned this bike is excellent. Great mileage, cheap purchase price, relatively cheap maint price, easy maint. Easy to manuever in the city and more than adequate on the interstate. An all around excellent bike. Beyond that you can fairly cheaply and easily modify it to specialize in just about any area you'd like it to accel at. I'm putting on some cast wheels and a chain conversion for touring this winter. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by Jay on 10/06/08 at 01:27:11 Your dealers info is faulty at best, misleading at worst. I own an '08 S40 and have nothing but good to say about the bike. It does what it was designed to do. I disagree about its capabilities on the superslab. Most of my riding is freeway, and the bike does just fine. All of the issues I've had have been comfort related, and all easily and relatively inexpensively fixed thanks to this forum. As others have said, it's a good bike, easy on the pocketbook, with easy maitenence to boot. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by forrest on 10/06/08 at 04:02:34 Maybe every market is different. I know the regional rep for Suzuki and he can't keep anything under 900cc in any of the local stores; and scooter sales are thru the roof. As far as the Savage goes, he says it's a fine, simple bike that requires little maintenace and gets great gas mileage. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by EssForty on 10/06/08 at 04:05:13 I would not consider two postings of dropped valves on a forum an indication of a factory problem. It is remotely possible, but hardly conclusive from a statistical sense. Tweaking the Savage is easy & cheap. It takes 10 minutes and about $3 to do the seat lift mod which does improve the seat comfort. The idle mix screw plug removal takes less than 5 minutes and is free. Rejetting and white spacer mods have not been required to eliminate backfiring for my bike (I'm at sea level.) Admittedly, the CCT design is an issue, and so is the requirement for frequent valve adjustments and head bolt torquing, but if you are not mechanically inclined you can pay a dealer to do the work with the money you saved on the purchase price. The ironic part of the EPA regulations is that I can park my 20 mpg cage, hop on my Savage which gives me 3 times the fuel economy, and if I'm one half turn richer on the idle mix I'm suddenly "illegal?". My total fuel consumption, greenhouse gases and actual lbs of emissions are significantly lower for my commute. <insert rant here> |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by mo.goad on 10/06/08 at 20:35:59 I have a buddy that runs a repair shop and the only thing he has seen is they over heat and trash the head. other than that they will run forever if you take care of it. I almost fell outta my chair when I read this!.... I have a '06 S40 and I constantly complain about how it may run too cool!.... takes me at least 8 miles after a good warm-up period to warm up. On a cool day after a long ride, I can touch the Head with my hand and keep it there for a handful of seconds without cold hands! I broke mine in with regular dino oil and now have switched to Synthetic Amsoil 20-50, that may be a factor and have heard from other riders that any Synthetic oil may make it run cooler ( I know mine sounds and runs smoother, reduced the normal noise in Head to almost nothing with Amsoil ) but I cant say for sure. But to say this is a POS bike from your local dealer is nonsense. IMO, its an old-fashioned true bikers bike. I relate the V-Twins and all of its luxuries as a car on 2 wheels, and an expensive one at that. I got some shocked looks just today when I was asked was it a Honda Rebel which I corrected them that it wasnt and told them I can run Interstate speeds all day long. One said " Yea, but you cant run with a group thats doing 100-120 mph. I promptly told em that I dont care to ride with idiots anyway. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by LANCER on 10/06/08 at 21:02:48 The only actual occasions I have ever heard that involved dropped valves or otherwise severe head damage was due to the cam chain getting too loose and the owner not checking in time to catch the problem. It is something that is fairly easy to check and needs to be part of a regular maintenance shedule |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by SV og LS on 10/07/08 at 01:34:30 636E616C6A7D3D380F0 wrote:
In Europe I've heard of some snapped valves, most likely due to consistent high revs in Autobahn. Head and rocker arm damage is not unheard of, most famous was when Motorrad Magazine had a camshaft and cylinder head failure on their long term test bike in late 1980s. In Germany alone over 20000 Savages were sold so plenty of bike breakers have them in bits but decent useable top end parts are hard to find, they are among the first parts to be sold. I bought our 1991 Savage in 1996 which already had the whole engine replaced from 1993 or 1994 model. The engine has about 80000kms now and needs a rebuild soon. |
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Title: Re: Problems with S40 ? Post by Sandy Koocanusa on 10/07/08 at 06:02:10 I bought my '87 this spring with 3600 miles on it. It now has somewhere around 11,000. It is running great, despite my attempts to destroy it by mechanikin' with a hammer and crowbar as my tools. I'm betting your dealer has a nice, expensive bike on his floor that he would rather sell to you. |
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